Farming is experiencing transformation with advanced technologies altering fruit picking and handling. Autonomous drones, such as Tevel's Flying Robots, are actively harvesting fruit worldwide. Concurrently, innovations like UC San Diego's GRIP-tape gripper represent advancements in gentle produce handling. These developments aim to enhance efficiency and precision in fruit production, with one being a current solution and the other a potential future application.
Tevel's Flying Autonomous Robots (FARs) integrate artificial intelligence and computer vision to redefine fruit harvesting. These drones navigate orchards, selecting only ripe fruit. Their ability to maneuver around branches minimizes damage to trees. Unlike human labor, these drones operate continuously, day and night, ensuring faster and consistent harvesting.
Farmers receive detailed, real-time data on harvest specifics, including fruit size, color, and ripeness, accessible via a mobile app. This information aids in optimizing harvest schedules and reducing waste. FARs are operational in orchards across the United States, Italy, Chile, and Israel, where they have reduced labor costs by up to 30% and improved harvest accuracy. Multiple drones collaborate from a mobile platform, efficiently covering large orchard areas. Beyond picking, these robots detect diseases and track fruit bin locations, offering farmers valuable crop management insights.
While Tevel's drones focus on harvesting, UC San Diego's GRIP-tape gripper remains experimental for post-harvest handling. Inspired by steel measuring tapes, this prototype uses layered "fingers" to grasp delicate fruits gently. Initial tests indicate potential in handling items like lemons and tomatoes without damage, though it has not been widely adopted in farming.
The gripper's motorized reels enable its tape-based fingers to extend, rotate, and convey items like a conveyor belt. Researchers emphasize its low cost and safety around humans, but further development is needed for integration into commercial packing lines or harvesters.
Tevel's drones are transforming orchards, while the GRIP-tape gripper offers a glimpse into the future handling of delicate produce. The blend of current automation and experimental robotics underscores both immediate benefits and long-term agritech potential.
Source: Cyberguy